HAINES - WOLFE CONTEMPORARY

COLONIAL ARTS - 600 TOWNSEND - LOWERDECK

10.22.09

Comment by AB: According to the proclamation, "Kota Ezawa's Odessa Staircase Redux... revisits the influential film montage from Sergei Eisenstein's Battleship Potemkin as a series of ink drawings. The drawings are based on the first frame of every cut in the Odessa Staircase sequence." Couldn't have said it better myself. In the back gallery, the entertainment factor of Katya Bonnenfant's multimedia endeavor would be embodied in a selection of vintage digital clocks and calculators, the displays of which have been reconstituted to play amusing animated vignettes. Worth a visit.

Comment by AB: New sculpture and drawings by Jud Bergeron, formerly of San Francisco, now of New York. Basically, Bergeron honors poet Bill Reynolds, a close friend who passed away several years ago. His heartfelt tribute involves drawing and constructing works of art composed entirely of letters, those letters being the ones contained in several select poems by Reynolds. Nicely done.

Comment by AB: Before I get to the my assessment of the show, Colonial Arts Gallery is an expansive and absolutely gorgeous space located on Kearny Street just below Broadway. It's owned by James Eddy and has been here for about a year and I can't believe I haven't even heard about it... 'til tonight. Speaking of tonight, this event debuts the retablo collection (also referred to as laminas in Mexico) of Paul LeBaron Thiebaud (yep, that's right-- the son of Wayne Thiebaud). For you tinhorns, a retablo is a religious painting on uh... tin... and you can see over 100 fine examples here, plus many more works of antique religious art courtesy of Colonial arts. The store/gallery is packed with other colonial arts (as in Spanish Colonial) including jewelry, paintings, sculpture, ceramics, masks, hats, silver, furniture and more. Definitely worth a visit!